San Diego Chargers: Long Live LDT

Well, the expected has happened: LaDainian Tomlinson, the face of the San Diego Chargers for most of the past 9 years, has been released due to a cost-cutting move (there is, currently, no salary cap for the 2010 season, so that's not the excuse). Do I like the decision? Of course not. Do I agree with it? Part of me does, but part of me doesn't. Sure, he had an off-year, but athletes are allowed those (aren't they?). That this is the third year in a row he's shown a decline and that he is over 30 years old is what sealed his fate, but I call bullshit.

Whatever... there's a small chance he'll resign with the Chargers, but I'm not holding my breath. So until something miraculous happens, I'm just going to assume that what's done is done, and I wish LDT the best in the remainder of his career. I can think of other Chargers let go because of cost-benefit analyses who wound up being effective players for YEARS after their release (Junior Seau, Leslie O'Neal, Drew Brees, Ben Leber), but in typical A.J. Smith fashion, such phenomena are ignored.

Anyway, there's now talk that the Chargers will trade Antonio Cromartie for a proven, veteran running back to fill LDT's shoes. That is the most likely scenario, followed closely by A.J. Smith's love for building through the draft. Outside of these two options, Chargers fans are (so far) relegated to pipe dreams.

However... there's a third option that I've been mulling since before the Chargers season so painfully ended against the New York Jets in the divisional round of the playoffs: acquiring a new backup (via whatever method) and reshuffling their existing roster.

Given that LDT is gone, the Chargers are left with Darren Sproles and Michael Bennett at halfback and Jacob Hester and Mike Tolbert at fullback. Sproles is not an every down back (and might not be retained, anyway) and Bennett is likely to follow Tomlinson into "old man" territory and be released in the next couple of years (if not this one). Which leaves Hester and Tolbert.

Think about it. Hester is not a true fullback, and if one were to compare Hester to the other Charger running backs from the 2009 season, his closest comparison is... oh, snap... LaDainian Tomlinson. Tolbert IS a true fullback (a good blocker, a good runner, and a good receiver), and is a much better fit for offensive setups that require a bona fide fullback. Both runners place high on A.J. Smith and Norv Turner's list, and it's not inconceivable to me to see a HB/FB combo of Hester and Tolbert filling the San Diego backfield for a long time to come.

Is it likely? No, but I'm still surprised that no Chargers beat writer has presented the possibility.

We shall see, I suppose.

Introducing the AFC West-Leading Chargers

In the absence of my beloved DirecTV NFL package, I was forced to listen to the Chargers-Broncos game on my Sprint phone (thank Buddha for NFL Mobile!). So, in other words: I didn't get to see the Chargers take first place in the AFC West from the evil Denver team, but I did get to hear it. And, I must admit, I rather like radio play-by-play. I like it even better when the Chargers win by a score of 32 to 3.

Oh, yeah... 32 to 3. Hey, Broncos fans! You suck!

I actually expected this game to be a bit closer than it was, given that the Broncos defeated the Chargers earlier in the year, but it was pretty much a one-sided affair from the opening kickoff to the closing second. So, with this victory, the Chargers (who were 2-3 after the last time they played the Broncos) kicked the Broncos (who were 6-0 after the last time they played the Chargers) out of the top spot. Result: Chargers in 1st at 7-3; Broncos in 2nd at 6-4. The other two teams in the division are so far behind, there's no point in mentioning their respective records.

Game Notes

After scoring a field goal in the 3rd quarter to close the gap from 13-0 to 13-3, the Denver Broncos attempted an ill-advised onside kick... recovered by the Chargers (Legedu Naanee). A few plays later, LaDainian Tomlinson ran in a touchdown to make the score 20-3. Nice one, Coach McDaniels.

The two Chargers fullbacks both rushed for over 45 yards with more than 6.5 yards per carry (Jacob Hester: 7 attempts for 46 yards; 6.6 yards per carry - and Mike Tolbert: 7 attempts for 58 yards; 8.3 yards per carry). Tolbert even added a rushing touchdown. And to think... they were going to cut Tolbert before the season started.

Antonio Cromartie added an interception, his third of the year.

Steve Gregory recovered two fumbles (one each forced by Sean Phillips and Jacques Cesaire). It was the first time a Charger had recovered two fumbles in one game in a very, very long time.

Kevin Burnett had two sacks, and Eric Weddle had one.

Some bad news: Nate Kaeding, despite having an otherwise excellent game (four field goals) had an extra point blocked. Whoops!

I love blowouts.

An Honest Smile for the Chargers

Finally. After 13 games, we've finally seen what we were supposed to have seen all season.

The Chargers finished a game in decisive fashion.

After being down 17-3 in the fourth quarter, Philip Rivers got out of his proverbial "but-I-was-awesome-in-college" rut, let his team to two touchdowns to force overtime, then led them to a win.

Kudos. Not only for the win, but for finally showing some of that Drew Brees-esque level-headedness that would allow one to lead a losing team to victory.

Shawne Merriman, who didn't finish the game, added two more sacks to his total.

Antonio Cromartie added another interception to his total.

LaDainian Tomlinson finally got a hard-earned 100-yard rushing game.

Norv Turner didn't do anything stupid.

The Chargers need only to win one more game to clinch their division (that is, if Denver doesn't lose today), and they are back in the playoffs.

Finally. True colors have shined. Yes, this season is still a bit of a disappointment, but at least the Chargers have finally proved (to me) that they are a team opponents should be worried about.

Hey, Titans fans... you suck.

Ugliness in Charger-ville

Somehow they did it. Somehow the Chargers held on after watching a 23-0 lead dwindle to a 23-21 lead. A 23-21 lead that saw the Colts with the ball on the Chargers 11 getting ready to kick the game-winning field goal. Somehow... oh, wait, no... they won because Adam Vinatieri missed two field goals. An act even LaDainian Tomlinson admitted he didn't expect would ever happen.

Darren Sproles and Antonio Cromartie, by themselves, saved the Chargers season. For now, at least. Sproles returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown and later added a punt return for a touchdown. Cromartie intercepted Peyton Manning three times (Manning threw another three during the game and still somehow managed to lead his team within two points of the Chargers).

Sure, LT added a rushing touchdown, but Philip Rivers returned to his "what the fuck is going on and where am I" ways and did just about nothing to help the Chargers, even losing a fumble in the endzone and knocking it into the hands of an opponent, which resulted in a Colts touchdown instead of a Colts safety. Oh, wait, no... he also threw two interceptions.

So, Darren Sproles and Antonio Cromartie saved the Chargers season. Despite everything Norv Turner and Philip Rivers could do to lose the game (Turner even threw two absolutely worthless challenge flags), Sproles and Cromartie saved the season... this week, at least.

As you can probably infer, I'm not celebrating the Chargers victory. I'm actually loathing it. Sure, a win is a win, but I've never missed Drew and Marty so much.

Ugh.

Fun fact: the Chargers are 3-1 versus the Manning brothers since Eli spurned San Diego in the 2004 draft, with only Peyton pulling off a single victory.